<p>I was accepted to BU's School of Management, Villanova School of Business, and University of Richmond's Robin School of Business. I was also waitlisted at BC's Carroll School of Management and NYU Stern. After visiting all three, I am slightly leaning towards Villanova, but still really likes BU. Each has their strong suits, so I try to compare them according to different categories. It would be great if anyone can comment on the below points and provide some insight.</p>
<p>Info about myself: Asian female living in CT, originally from Taiwan. Have various academic interests, namely Marketing, International Business, IT, Accounting, Psychology, and Operations Management, so I'm looking to double major and minor in a few of those areas. Passionate about sports, especially basketball. Not a big fan of alcohol and partying, but enjoys hanging out with friends. Plans to pursue an MBA after a few years of work. Also, $ isn't necessary an issue here since it would be roughly the same cost (~$8000) for me to attend these schools. </p>
<ul>
<li>Academic quality - Villanova > Richmond > BU</li>
<li>National/international Recognition/Prestige - BU > Villanova = Richmond (this one I'm not so sure, but I might eventually work in Taiwan after MBA so international recognition is kind of important)</li>
<li>Location - BU > Villanova > Richmond</li>
<li>Study abroad program - BU > Villanova = Richmond (important since I really want to have study abroad experience, especially in London, Beijing/Shanghai, and Japan)</li>
<li>Diversity - BU > Richmond > Villanova (this is the one that holds me back from paying my deposit at Villanova. Its lack of cultural and economic diversity kind of bother me... especially since I'm Asian and come from a low-income family)
Sports - Villanova > BU > Richmond</li>
<li>Campus - Richmond > Villanova > BU</li>
<li>Career placement / alumni network - BU > Villanova > Richmond (not sure, but very important to me.)</li>
<li>Campus/social life - BU > Richmond = Villanova</li>
<li>Fit (feels belonged when visiting, regardless of academic quality, prestige, etc) - BU > Richmond = Villanova</li>
<li>Ranking (Businessweek) - Villanova > Richmond > BU (how much does this count?)</li>
</ul>
<p>What do you think? Current students, parents, alumni, prospective students, anyone, please share your thoughts! Also if there are any insights on NYU Stern or BC Carroll, feel free to share. Thanks!</p>
<p>elec, I’m not sure what you’re basing your above relative rankings on. Of course I’m a bit biased, but I think you’ve got UR ranked a bit low in a couple of them.</p>
<p>First, you mention that you want to maybe work in Taiwan after your MBA. If you have your MBA, that’s what people will care about moreso than your undergrad days. If international recognition is important for you, then go to an internationally recognized MBA program.</p>
<p>In regards to location, Richmond is definitely the smallest of the three you mention. It’s also the closest to the beach, the closest to the nation’s capital, has some fantastic arts (the recent Picasso exhibit that came through the VMFA made only one stop east of the Mississippi…VMFA is the 8th largest arts museum in the country), doesn’t have the traffic issues, is the warmest and has great dining options. It depends on what you’re looking for I guess.</p>
<p>UR was recently ranked as the hottest school in the country for International Studies, partly because of its emphasis on study abroad. UR also just recently completed its new International Center ([Carole</a> Weinstein International Center - International Education - University of Richmond](<a href=“http://international.richmond.edu/campus/center/index.html]Carole”>http://international.richmond.edu/campus/center/index.html)). UR has 75 programs in 30 countries and I believe over half of the students take advantage of the opportunity.</p>
<p>Career placement is heavily dependent on what you want to do while at UR. Based on what you’ve listed though, I wouldn’t worry about that at all. Marketing, I-business and accounting are all strong, especially the latter two. I can’t speak for the others as well.</p>
<p>You really think BU has better sports than UR? Our basketball team just wrapped up a Sweet Sixteen season and our football team won a national championship in 2008. BU doesn’t have football, and their basketball team plays in a hockey rink. Good hockey team, but no way the Terriers are better overall than the Spiders…</p>
<p>I would make sure that you take the time to visit all three. This is where you’re going to be spending your life over the next four years. That said, it sounds like you’re leaning towards business and due to that I would eliminate BU. VU and UR both have stronger business programs (VU was 7, UR 12 and BU 31 according to the latest rankings from BusinessWeek).</p>
<p>I agree, both UR and VU are stronger than BU in my opinion. But if you prefer BU, gomfor it. You are going to be there for 4 years so you might as well go somewhere where you will feel comfortable and enjoy yourself.</p>
<p>Thanks Spiders and RisingChemist. I apologize if I ranked UR incorrectly. I based the rankings on my impression towards these schools. Now I realize that I did rank UR unfairly, especially in the study abroad program category. It does offer more exchange programs in Asian countries than Nova. This only made my decision harder :(</p>
<p>This is nothing more than anecdotal, but I have noticed a LOT more Asians on campus than when I graduated. </p>
<p>If you wish, PM me, and I could put you in touch with someone who was in a similar situation as you just a couple of years ago (coming from Asia and trying to decide between some great schools). May help you decide.</p>
<p>Why do you think the academic quality of Villanova is better than Richmond? According to the Princeton Review, Villanova gets an academic score of 88, while Richmond gets a score of 94.</p>
<p>@spiders05
im a freashman transfer student and i recently got into bu and ur and i like them both. but im from south east virginia so im leaning towards richmond, especially because i love the city and the art scene that VCU brings. i was wondering if you had any idea on how generous richmond is with financial aid? i would love to go there, but its so expensive.</p>
<p>I personally did not apply for aid when I was looking at going to UR, and now that I’m grad school, I only deal with federal loans (and my how those…nevermind). </p>
<p>UR traditionally has been generous with aid to those that really merit it (academically). UR used to cap the loans that would be given as part of the financial aid package at $4,000 a year (so the max school debt would be $16,000). I’m not 100% if they still do this or not given the Great Recession. Odds are you won’t qualify for this, but worth throwing out there – if you’re a VA native and your family makes less than $40,000 a year, UR is free for you. </p>
<p>I didn’t get out and explore Richmond as much as I should have when I went here, but you’re 100% right about the arts scene. VCU certainly is the more “artsy” school, but I wouldn’t say that the city’s scene is due to that “other school.” The VMFA recently had a great Picasso exhibit and the music scene is pretty good for a city the size of Richmond (especially considering it doesn’t have any large arenas for the biggest acts). You’re also not too far from C-ville, DC or your neck of the woods for big acts. The last couple of years, I’ve seen Jay-Z, Timberlake, Kanye, Lupe Fiasco, OAR, Snoop, Stone Temple Pilots all within a couple of hours of RIC.</p>
<p>@spiders05
okay thank you so much for the help, and yeah i was able to go to the Picasso exhibit a few months ago and it was amazing. but youre right that the financial aid will most likely be limited because of the recession, i really appreciate your opinion.im just hoping that ill win the lottery i guess!</p>